On the Edge
by Emmithar
Summary: A single decision can turn into a deadly mistake, as Greg and Sara find out one stormy night.
1. Default Chapter

**One the Edge**

**By: Emmithar**

**Rating: PG-13**

**Summary: A single decision can turn into a deadly mistake, as Greg and Sara find out one storm night.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own CSI, don't own the characters. You know the drill**

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**Chapter One: The Fall**

The steady beam of the flashlight moved over the ground in a slow, back and forth motion; Greg taking each step carefully, kneeling down to place a marker every foot or so. They would definitely need to come back out here in the day time, being this far out from any real light source made work like this that much harder. Trying to locate skid marks on black tar in the middle of the night was like trying to find a needle in the haystack. Actually trying to find the needle would have probably been easier.

Kneeling down, Greg placed another marker on the road, the beam of his flashlight sweeping over the small area. With a sigh, he raised his head, smiling to himself at the sight of the city, several miles away. It was like a shining star, floating just above the dry land. The only one out that night as well, he reminded himself, casting a look to the sky. Not a clear patch of sky in sight.

"Come on Greg, stop daydreaming, let's get this wrapped up," Catherine's voice snapped him from his thoughts.

In response, Greg grinned at her, despite the fact she probably didn't even see it. "I can't be daydreaming," he told her, "It's in the middle of the night."

Catherine let out what sounded like a harsh laugh, but didn't say anything back. Not to him at least.

"Watch you step Sara," Greg followed her Gaze to where Sara was documenting the car that was halfway over the cliff's edge. "That first step is a doozy."

Greg shrugged, standing back up to take a few more steps, than kneeling back down. They had been here for hours now; the officer that had been with them earlier had left to check on the towing truck that had never showed. They were close to losing the car, and had tried to anchor it down with some rocks, with little luck. They couldn't do much, only hope that it wouldn't fall before the truck arrived.

"I think I've got something here," he told Catherine, setting down his flashlight to take a few pictures.

Catherine came to look over his shoulder as he collected the small metal piece with a pair of tweezers. "Could be from our vic's car, or from whoever hit her," Catherine nodded, "Good work."

Greg was just bagging the piece of evidence when the first drop hit him. He let out a groan, glancing back up to the sky. Just what they needed, a desert rain storm. It would wash out most of their evidence before they even got a look at it.

"Pack it up, let's get before it gets too bad," Catherine made the call.

"If we leave now, we'll loose the car," Sara yelled from her spot, trying to be heard over the clash of thunder that had filled the air.

"We can always pull it out later. It'll be more work, but if we don't get out of here, we'll need something to pull us out as well."

Catherine was way ahead of the two; with her case already packed she was climbing into the car as Greg and Sara were hurrying to do the same. It was raining harder now, big drops, and heavy. Catherine rolled down the window.

"I'll catch you two at the lab," she yelled at them, able to see their faces as lightning flashed across the sky. It was followed by another loud roar of thunder.

"Yeah," Sara nodded, closing her own case.

"Drive careful," she told them before rolling the window back up, and pulling away. Greg was already loading the second car, when the rain suddenly became torrential downpour. He turned around, waiting for Sara, but was surprised to find her with her kit open once again.

"What are you doing?" He yelled in order to be heard, as she stumbled back over towards the car.

"We're not finished here," Sara yelled back, going over towards the car. "This rain will kill any evidence we have, we need to get as much as we can."

"Sara," Greg started to argue, taking off after her. He was interrupted by the thunder. The storm was getting closer. "Sara, we need to get going. We'll come back."

"We need to get it now Greg. Catherine just doesn't want to get wet." She reached over with a gloved hand, working to get the door open on the crashed vehicle. The car swayed under the movements, Sara waited until it had settled back down before proceeding to climb into the front seat.

"Sara, this is crazy," Greg tired to convince her to come out. "Come on," he reached in for her hand, but she waved him off, tensing as the car rocked beneath her.

"If you want to help, hold the car down," she told him, moving her flashlight slowly around the interior of the car.

"No," Greg said firmly, "Let's go before you get killed. You know what these rainstorms can do," he pleaded.

"Yes, I do Greg," she told him, pulling out a swab, "Which is why we need to get this stuff now."

Irritated, Greg reached in, grabbing her wrist, probably a little to forceful, and started to pull her out. He hadn't meant to hurt her, but this was insane. Still seeing her wince like that made him feel guilty, made him loosen his grip on her. She pulled back with an equally forceful tug, not willing to go anywhere. It was in that moment she felt the car rock under her, and this time it wasn't going to stop. Greg saw it too.

Nearly jumping in the car himself, Greg grabbed a hold of her arms, pulling her out even as the car fell. He planted his feet firmly on the ground, or what he thought was ground, only to find the edge had already been washed away by the rain, and felt himself sliding; sliding down to the gully below.

Greg was desperately seeking a handhold as he slid further down, the finally plunge wasn't far away when managed to snag a root. He wasn't even aware he still had a hold of Sara until he came to a stop, their combined weight causing the root to snap slightly.

"Pull yourself up," Greg yelled down to her, trying to find some footholds, to balance his weight, but the cliff face had turned into mud. Below him, Sara was having even less luck. Greg was her only support at the moment, and she didn't know how long he could hold onto her.

"There's another one up here," Greg suddenly yelled at her. Sara felt him slowly lifting her up.

Sara did what she could, but it was hard work. The ground kept giving way below her, every so often she would come in contact with a rock formation that allowed enough room to get a foot on it, but they were small. She reached up as far as she could, stretching, feeling the root end in her fingers. With a breath she jumped for it, grabbing a secure hold on to it.

Greg had kicked away enough mud to find a secure rock, but it was barely big enough to hold him, let alone balance him. His main weight was still on the root, but with Sara's weight diverted, it felt as though it would hold, for a while at least.

Sara had done the same as him, holding onto the root tightly as she gazed upward. It was hard to see anything, the rain helped little. It was cascading over the cliff like the waterfall, drenching the already wet pair. She turned to look at Greg, who was also surveying their scene.

Another bolt of lightning lit the sky, allowing the pair to see each other for a moment. "What do we do know?" Sara yelled over the storm.

"We have to try and climb out," Greg yelled back, already knowing that task wasn't going to easy, or safe for that matter. But they couldn't stay like this, it would several hours before anyone would come and check up on them.

With one hand he reached up, feeling around in the mud and rocks for something that would support him, but found nothing. Sara had found something, reaching up for it, the root snapped, sending her tumbling down further.

She came to a rest nearly four feet below Greg, a branch having caught her shirt, bringing her to an abrupt halt. Sara wrapped her arms around the branch, lifting herself up some, her feet digging into the muddied side once again.

"Sara?" Greg was yelling frantically, he couldn't see her, or hear her in anyway, he was afraid she had fallen all the way.

"I'm okay," she yelled back at him, her voice shaken, but she doubted Greg could hear it over the storm. Her head was throbbing now; she realized dully that she must have hit it during the fall. She closed her eyes, shivering softly, the rainwater and mud had caked most of her body now, drenching her clothes, and it was getting cold. She assumed Greg was in much of the same condition.

She allowed herself to look down, searching the darkness as lighting flashed, brining the area to life for only a second, before becoming dark once again. It was long enough for Sara to see a raging river below them, something not uncommon for these storms. Flash Floods. The water would slowly rise, until it swept them away, unless of course they fell first. Either way, it was rarely possible to out swim an angry river.

**TBC**


	2. Lights Out

**Chapter Two: Lights Out**

Catherine had been glad about making the call to leave when she did. The rain had became heavy, the storm was causing havoc. She wasn't all that surprised to find the power out when she arrived at the lab. The back up generator had kicked in, supplying enough power for emergency lights, and cooling systems to keep much needed evidence intact.

The short walk from her car into the lab itself had left her soaked. Making a stop at trace she dropped what evidence she carried on the table, and proceeded to the break room, which is where she found Grissom and Archie carrying on a conversation.

Grissom nodded to her as she walked in. "Good to see you didn't need a boat to get here," he commented dryly. "Unfortunately there's not much going on here, if you couldn't tell."

"Any estimate on when we'll have power back?" Catherine asked, taking a seat next to Archie.

Grissom shrugged, leaning against the counter. The coffee he was drinking now was still warm, they had lost power only a few minutes ago. "No idea, with this storm, could be a few hours. Warrick's doing some document work, but it's hard to see anything really. Told him to give it a rest but he said he was handling it. Nick gave me a call, he's over at the Tropicana interviewing a suspect in question, said that he was going to wait out the storm before heading back."

Catherine agreed, "Smart man, Sara and Greg shouldn't be too much longer. They were right behind me."

"Well, let's hope they won't need a boat either," Archie laughed a little. "I really hate these storms."

The three agreed silently. "I'm going to see if Warrick needs any help," Catherine said, standing.

Archie nodded as well, "I may as well do some cleaning, while I have time."

The two watched Grissom, to see what he would say, but he just shrugged again. "I'm just going to hang out here till power comes back on."

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He wasn't sure how long it had been, all he knew was that it was longer than he liked. Greg's fingers were going numb, and it was getting harder to hold on to the root. The storm was right over them now; lightning flashed above their heads, and thunder drowned out the attempted communication between the two.

Greg couldn't see Sara, not from where he was. She had called up to him a few times, he couldn't make out what she was trying to say, but from the location of her voice, it sounded as if she was right below him.

Greg shifted a little, the ground giving way beneath him. He held on to the root tightly, his arms taking most of his weight as he came to a stop again, swinging against the cliff face for a moment, before digging his feet back into the side.

The water was still cascading over the side, Greg doubted that he could get any wetter that he was at the present moment. Sputtering as he accidentally swallowed another mouthful of water he slowly managed to get his feet planted back into the side.

If he could feel his hands, he would have known that they were bruised, lined with cuts from holding onto the small root for so long. Still he held fast, knowing that it was the only thing holding him from falling down to the waters below.

Below, Sara had firmly wrapped her arms around the branch, able to pull herself up some, letting the branch do most of the work in supporting herself. She had reached up a few different times, feeling the wall of mud with her hands, looking for a way back up. But it was quite impossible. The cliff was practically flat, straight up and down.

The branch was bending under her weight, but effectively holding her. She was in fact, so cold and numb, that she didn't feel the rising water settling around her ankles until a sudden rush of water almost pulled her from her perch. Startled, she lost her balance, falling halfway off the branch into the waters.

Everything went silent for a moment, the only sound was that of the rushing water around her, then she came up sputtering, coughing up the water she had just swallowed. She still was holding the branch tightly and slowly worked her way back up. By the time she had gotten back up, the water was around her waist, and rising quickly.

"Greg!" she yelled out, only to be muffled by the fierce storm. The water was at her chest now, it would cover her in only a few minutes. She yelled again, this time seeing Greg move to look down, hearing her cry.

"Sara?" Greg responded, twisting as far as he could to look below him as the sky lit up. He saw her for the first time since her fall, the water was settling up around her shoulders, her fingers were white from gripping the branch so hard, in avoidance from being swept away.

She was slowly slipping, the rush of the water too much for her. It was around her neck now, as Greg looked for some way down to her. His initial fear turned into shock when the sky lit up again, and she was no longer there.

"Sara!" he screamed into the darkness, as if expecting an answer. Shaking, he drew in a ragged breath, before closing his eyes and letting himself drop into the violent waters below.

**TBC**

**More coming soon!**


	3. Rushing Waters

**Thanks to all my readers! Quick update for you all**

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**Chapter Three: Rushing Waters**

Greg had expected the initial impact of the water. He had prepared himself for the rushing river as best as he could; what he wasn't prepared for was the temperature. Greg hadn't thought it possible to become any colder or wetter than he already was, and he was proven wrong.

The fierce current grabbed at him the moment he hit. The cold water stung his already numbing body, and for a moment, he found himself disorientated. Then he was at the surface, drawing in the first ragged breath in what seemed like minutes before he was pulled back under.

His first thought was to swim, to get out in any possible method. It was what he did as well, with little success. There was no sign of Sara, and his worried increased; though she could be anywhere, flash floods were merciless. The next time he was pulled under, he was down there for longer than he would have liked. Breaking the surface, he came up coughing, choking on the water he had swallowed.

Something hit him in the face then. Not only that, but it brought him to a halt, the river water rushing past his chin, flowing over his shoulders. It took him a moment to realize that his jacket had become entangled in a tree. It took him even longer to realize he was not the only one.

"Sara," he managed to sputter, grabbing the branch and moving towards her. She was further out than he was, holding onto the tree branches with a death grip. He was glad to see that she looked unscathed, at the very least, alive.

It was a long and hard process, each movement of his drew the branch further into the water, shaking and straining against the current, threatening to pull him under. His jacket kept on coming snared by the protruding limbs, smaller than the one he held, but still difficult to maneuver around. Reaching her, he somehow managed to wrap and arm around her shoulders, pulling her back towards him, except she wouldn't let go of the branch.

"I've got you," Greg tried to convince her, yelling over all the noise. Sara shook her head, not even looking at him. Her breathing was quick and fast, the water lapping at her chin. "I won't let go of you," he promised, trying to pull her free again.

Her grip tightened, then relaxed some as she nodded, using one arm to grab onto his. Greg grimaced; she had a stronger grip than he thought possible. Greg began to pull her back towards the shore; the tree was on the banks at the bottom of the cliff. If they could get out her, the cliff face should be easy to climb, unless of course it was like the other one. It was a start at the very least.

It was even more difficult getting back than it was going out. Sara was too frightened to provide much help at first, but she slowly caught on to his movement, and began moving with Greg, rather than leave him to do all the work. Everything seemed to be going fine until they neared the end. Greg had grabbed a smaller branch; it had broken off his hand.

It dropped both of them back under the surface. Sara grabbed onto the main body of the tree before she had gone all the way under, pulling herself back up. But Greg hadn't been so quick. Relief flooded her when his head broke the surface on the other side, he had managed to snag on a branch under the water, wrapping his arms around the tree as Sara had, only on the other side now.

Greg could already feel the tree straining, trying to support their weight and the power of the current. His body was being pulled more forcefully now that nothing was between him and the current. Greg reached over as best he could, grabbing Sara's hand. It was as cold as his was, and clumsily he gave it a squeeze.

He had been surfing and scuba diving, but neither of them could compare to this. The river moved differently than the ocean. But he did know one thing. "Listen," he told her, waiting until she was watching. "Whatever happens, don't fight the river," he explained as best he could, making sure to pronounce each word clearly and loudly so that she could hear him. "You'll only wear yourself out. Just keep your head above water. We'll get out of this," he said, quieter than before. "Okay?"

He watched her nod as a sickening feeling worked its way over his stomach. The branch wouldn't support the two of them for long and he knew it. Giving her one last nod he slowly let go, letting the current pull him away. Her shocked expression was the last thing he saw before he disappeared under the surface.

**TBC**


	4. What You Don’t Know

**Chapter Four: What You Don't Know **

Greg hadn't wanted to let go; he was afraid. The same fear he had seen in Sara's eyes haunted him as well. Letting go was one of the last things he wanted to do, but he knew he had too. The branch wouldn't support their combined weight for long. If he could give Sara a chance, then he would.

Giving her hand a final squeeze, he had smiled softly, encouragingly, as he let himself be taken away by the river. The current had pulled him under immediately, but instead of fighting, he let it pull him along. He broke the surface a ways down, sputtering as he done so before.

Most of his effort went now into keeping his head above the water, still that task was hard. His mind screamed at him to swim, but he knew that it would be in vain. The swollen waters were moving with such a force Greg swore that he could actually feel the river wanting to flow faster. The thought scared him.

He couldn't see in the darkness, only trust that the river would lead him to another tree, or rock, even better, land. It had done so once, why not again? The reasoning wasn't good, or even bad in a sense, but it was all Greg had to hold onto.

He could feel his body slowly shutting down, he couldn't feel his legs anymore, hadn't been able to feel them for some time now. Dead weight, essentially, was what they were now. A combination of the cold and shock was getting to him. He could feel his arms slowly becoming heavy as liquid metal. It was funny, funny odd, you heard people use expressions like that all the time. But you never realized how true they were until you were in that situation.

The waters were becoming rougher now, if that was at all possible. Flowing faster, tossing and turning, Greg was a rag doll, a kite lost among the wind. He was pulled under, breaking the surface a moment later, his motions coming to an abrupt halt as he slammed into something heavy.

Greg had expected some type of pain, mainly due to the large smacking sound that was made when he hit the large rocks, but all he felt was mass confusion. He wasn't moving anymore, the current was pinning him against the rocks. He stayed like that for some time, eyes halfway closed, as if willing the world to stop spinning around him.

Finally his sense came around to him, he could remember where he was, and what had happened. Shaking off the daze, he reached up, trying to grasp the rock in order to pull himself out, but it was no use. His fingers were frozen, they had no feeling left in them.

Letting out a quivering sigh, he rested his head against the rock, closing his eyes. At least he wasn't moving anymore, that was a plus. He wondered dully how Sara was doing, he could see her in his mind, still holding strong onto the branch. Maybe she had even worked up the courage and strength to pull herself out.

She would be out on the ledge, pacing back and forth, trying to find a way to climb out. Then she would find some help. She would be safe, he reminded himself. Sara was never willing to back down so easily, she was strong spirited. It was one of things he admired about her. But it was more than admiration.

Greg let out another sigh, a much sadder one, wondering if he would ever get to see her again. He wished that he could, he hadn't meant to hurt her like that, hadn't meant to grab her arm so harshly. She had scared him, Greg knew that he should have listened to what she said. True that Catherine was supervising both of them, a last minute call from Grissom, but Sara still had a say over him. It kinda sucked being the newbie sometimes.

Greg knew that if he had listened, they wouldn't be in this situation. It would serve him right if this was how it ended. His only prayer would be that Sara got out okay, and that she would be able to forgive him.

He swallowed tightly, shivering. What if it was worse? What if they both made it, and Sara never wanted to talk to him again? He certainly would deserve it, more than he deserved dying out here, but the thought alone was too painful to even think of. After all, why would someone like Sara want to spend time around someone who almost got them killed? It was already obvious that Sara wasn't interested in him. She probably saw him as immature and unfit, it wouldn't surprise him either.

He was crying; he hadn't realized it until now. His tears felt hot against his face, as he drew in another shaky breath. It was hard to breathe, he noticed dimly, and tried to adjust himself so that it would be easier. As soon as he shifted, the current had him again. Greg dug his fingers into the rock, but it was clear the river would not let up. He was able to manage one last breath before being pulled under by the demanding river once again.

* * *

Catherine was leaning over Warrick's shoulder, watching as he slowly moved the broken glass around the table. The pair had gone from reading over documents in the pale light from the table lantern Warrick had managed to pull out from a top shelf. There was only one emergency light in the current room, and although a separate room down the hall had better lighting, it would be too much of a hassle to carry all the pieces down there.

She let out a sigh, moving to the other side of the table, picking up another piece. There had to be over a hundred small pieces, and they had been working as this for over an hour now.

"Turn it over," Catherine suggested as Warrick let out a sigh. Suddenly a few loud beeps pierced the air, followed by a rushing of air. A second later the lights blinked back on.

"Thank goodness," she stated, things would go much easier in the light.

Warrick switched off the lantern, turning it upside down. "We need to find new batteries," he told her, "So that this will be more useful the next time we loose power."

She nodded in agreement. "We don't loose power very often, so we don't think about that too much."

"Hey Catherine," Brass had poked his head into the room, waiting until she looked up before continuing. "Greg and Sara are here right?"

She shrugged, "As far as I know, they were right behind me. Why do you ask?"

"We received a report of an abandoned vehicle along the highway. Caller was vague, couldn't really see what kind of vehicle it was, just that it was left there with door open, but it sounds like it's around your crime scene. Sara and Greg are the only two I haven't found, so I wondering if they stuck they storm out. You know, broke down or something."

"Well I'm sure they're around here somewhere, you try their cells?"

Brass shook his head, "No, but I'll give it a try. Have fun you kids," he said grinning as he left.

Warrick raised an eyebrow, "Yeah, and people think jigsaw puzzles are hard to put together."

Catherine laughed, the thought that the two may possibly be in some sort of trouble never crossing her mind.

* * *

**TBC**

**Okay, R2R…yeah, I've been really lax on them, sorry :P**

**Mellaithwen: **Yeah, I've been doing a lot of writing lately, during my lunch breaks, after work, at night. Plot bunnies unwilling to leave me alone. My tops would be twenty pages in two nights. That was a lot of writing. And Greg's a sweetie yeah, can't let Sara drown, at least not yet. Evil Grin hehe…and I think I'm evil…backs away slowly

**Lins**Glad you're liking the story, and love all your short, sweet, and straight to the point reviews :D

**Stormchilde**First off, I must say I love the spelling of your name. It's very unique. Hope you take a little more suspense cause this story has a few more chapters to go yet.

**Chrissy8: **Will Greg okay? Hmm…will he ever be okay after us fangirls are done torturing him? No wonder all they all stay in hiding…

**Avalon88: **Thanks for the comment. Most of my stories are Greg and Sara related, they tend to be a good pair to work with. Besides that, I feel that Sara's a fun character to write, and of course, any good CSI story has to have Greg in it :D

**Kelly: **Hope this soon enough. Though I could be really evil, leave it at a really nasty cliffie, and not update for a year…wait, I already did that once with another fic…oops…

**Orangebronco**Oh, I know how much rain Vegas and that area is getting, mainly because it's our rain. Rain we need really bad too…they say it's the driest we've been in over 100 years…and it's only winter! Not looking forward to summer, maybe I'll spend it in Vegas...:D

**Dee**LOL, Titanic, Scene 7, act 61, Jack dies, Rose finds whistle that saves her life. That movie kinda irritated me, scientifically speaking, there were some incorrectly done issues. Done extensive research, two years worth, trust me :D Rambling, off the topic, sorry

**Tripp3235: **I hadn't intended including Catherine in the first chapter, but it sort of happened, and I needed to get rid of her before they fell or else the story would already be over. Sara will apologize, though not in the way you would think, said too much already. About the river part, that is actually true, someone taught it too me somewhere…fuzzy memory. And Greg's going…for a swim I guess…lol, reminds me of the CSI ep with the hockey one, where Griss tells Sara to tell Greg bye before leaving the lab, that was too perfect.

**Jacinda**Can I point out that both your reviews are almost identical? Lol, it's great, love reading them, hope you enjoy!

**Jenny: **I rock? Coolness, never heard that one before. Another new chapter, another new day. Or in my case, night. Glad you are enjoying it so much

**Goody: **It is hard to find a situation to find our favorite CSI's to get into. You always have the criminal on the scene that wasn't cleared, but that seems redundant sometimes. Love your story, it's amazing, and looking forward to another chapter. That last one had to be a tough one to write. Just want to give Nick a big hug, and find Greg and give him an even bigger, though gentler one, on the account it may hurt him to do so…seeing that he does live…you wouldn't kill him off would you? I nearly forgot about his scuba/surfing skills until I was writing that chapter, and having him think he could manage, and realize later (when it's too late) that the ocean and river are two different things. Since I have little experience with both, I can kind of tell, in some ways at least.

**Melo**Liked it that much huh? Unfortuneately this one wont have too much Greg/Sara fluff if any at all. My other fic, Cold as Ice, does have it, and will be focusing on it more so if you are interested in that stuff.

**Ms. Elizabeth Granger: **Yeah, Greggo did let go, twice, not learning fast is he? Uh...don't bite my arm off…I kinda sorta need it…back away slowly

**Slynn**Don't tear your hair out, that wouldn't be good. I don't want to be paying barbers for their work.

**Gizi1213: **Hopefully this won't keep you awake as well…I tried to end it on a lighter note…key term there is try.

**Xombe**Glad you like it so far! Love reading your reviews

**CatStokes**Greg lets go, more than once. Why do I always stick them in dangerous conditions? Uh…cause I can? Does that work?

**LuvinNickyStokes: **Don't leggo of Greggo? Okay. Clutches hehe…mine now.

**Duckie**** (formerly A Bloom: **Romance ey? Never thought about that until you pointed it out. Greg's being a good boy, like he always is!

**Only Darkness Exists: **Thanks for the review, glad you like it so far!

**Miss Jazz: **I'm glad you like my stories, I enjoy writing them! Really so much, keep reviewing when you can!

**Sorry if I left anyone out, didn't mean too, and for any typos, spelling errors, grammar errors in any of the names. That was a long R2R, now I know why I've been avoiding them…hehe, way too late at night for this. Until then, Review!**


	5. Out of Reach

**Chapter 5: Out of Reach**

Sara had been stunned when Greg had let go. The river hadn't taken him away, he just, let go. She watched as he went under, disappearing from sight. For a minute, she made move, only clung onto the branch tightly, her jaw quivering as the water lapped at her chin. Then she called out his name, but could barely hear herself say it.

Finally the time came that she knew she had to do something. She was becoming colder by the minute, and staying here would only result in death. No one was looking for them, and even if they were, no one would be able to find them. It was just too much too ask.

Reaching up with one hand, the other wrapped tightly around the branch to secure herself, she felt around, digging her fingers into the softening bark. It was hard, her hands no longer had any feeling, they didn't want to hold, didn't want to respond to the demands she was placing on them. Though, slowly, little by little, she began to pull herself up.

In what seemed like hours later, she was laying on her stomach, now on top of the branch, after being able to swing her leg across one side. From there, she had hauled herself out of the water, and for the first, she let out a sigh, closing her eyes as she rested. Her legs and arms still dangled in the river, the force behind it still as strong as it had been when it had first taken her away.

What had she been thinking? She knew that it was unsafe to enter the car, it was why they hadn't gone in before, and she knew the dangers of these storms, had been through many herself, had seen, in person, what they could do. She should have listened to Catherine, to Greg. And what of Greg? Where would his fate lie? Was he destined to die here, among these waters because of her?

Choking out a cry, Sara slowly pushed herself into a sitting position, ignoring the tingling sensation in her arms as she did so. The branch swayed from her movements as she half crawled and half pulled herself to the ledge that the tree hung off of. She was nearly there when a sharp crack filled the air, and the branch under her was pulled down by the current, dropping Sara back into the water.

She clung onto the branch, knowing that it would help keep her afloat if they were to be taken downstream again. But the break had not been complete, and it still held fast to the tree. But she could hear the wood breaking ever so slowly and Sara knew that she didn't have very much time.

Hand over hand she pulled herself closer, she was an arm's lengths away now, only a bit closer and she could grab onto the main part of the tree, and then the ledge. The branch shifted again, breaking even more under the rush of water.

Reaching out, Sara could touch the leave tips of another branch, and she grabbed a hold. Frustration filled her that her only accomplishment was a handful of leaves. Dropping the fistful of foliage, they floated quickly away, some becoming entangled in her hair as she reached for another try.

Nearly there, she let out a gasp as the branch broke again, pulling her further away from her intended target. It wouldn't last much longer, this she knew. Taking a deep breath, as the branch finally snapped in two, she threw her body forward, both hands grasping in the air for something, for anything. But came up with nothing as she was pulled underwater, then came to a stop as her hands dug into the side, catching a rock.

Breaking the surface she let out a loud gasp, somewhat in surprise. She was close enough now, reaching up she wrapped her arm around the tree, legs kicking out, using the rock for support as she both pushed and pulled herself up.

Breathing heavily, she stretched herself out, lying on her stomach, supported only by her forearms as she stared at the ground that was almost as dark as the sky. It was then Sara realized that it was no longer raining. Glancing at the sky, then back to the river just a few feet away, Sara wanted nothing more than to sleep. But the river was still rising, though not as quickly as before, but still, it was a threat. And she needed to find Greg.

This thought directed her attention to the cliff face in front of her; she surveyed it carefully, knowing that not climbing it wasn't an option. And she knew that the sooner she got moving, the better. Letting out a groaning sigh, she pushed herself to her feet, stumbling towards the cliff slowly.

* * *

Catherine's eyes snapped up, focusing on the clock. She shook her head, sighing bitterly as she began to pack her stuff up. She was overtime again, something she had too much of lately. Ecklie had been on her case already, and he certainly wouldn't be happy to find her here still, on overtime after a double shift.

Her phone clattered nosily on the table, it had been to set to vibrate earlier that day, during a meeting. Reaching over Catherine snapped it up in one fluent motion, flipping it open.

"Willows," she said quickly, still picking up the documents she had been working on with one hand.

"Catherine, it's Brass, I'm down here checking out that abandoned vehicle call we received."

"Yeah," She responded, "you figure anything out?"

"Well," Brass started, it was in that tone of voice that said things were not right, "it's one of ours, and it's Sara's and Greg's."

Catherine didn't say anything, only stared at the papers in her hands, not really seeing them. She wasn't sure that she was hearing things right, mainly because they didn't make sense. "Are you sure?" she finally managed after Brass had asked if she was still there.

"Positive, their belongings inside the vehicle. I've tried there cells, neither are answering."

Catherine nodded, dropping the papers on the table. Ecklie could kill her later for all she cared, "I'm on my way."

**TBC**


	6. On the Way

**Chapter Six: On the Way**

Sara had been walking now for some time, arms folded across her chest. It had taken her what seemed like hours to climb the face of the cliff, but it hadn't been that hard. It was much more suitable to climb than the last one was. Still, being cold and wet, Sara had been moving slow.

Getting out of the water had given her time to dry off, and though she was still cold, she was dry, for the most part anyways. After reaching the top of the cliff, she had circled back down, following the rushing river downstream, looking for Greg.

It was light outside now, with clouds hanging in the air, still threatening to let loose another downpour. There had been no sign of Greg, but Sara wasn't willing to give up on hope quite yet.

Her entire body was sore, Sara was fairly certain that nothing was broken, but each step was painful. It was a given however, she was still trying to figure out why she wasn't dead, and the thoughts that Greg might be didn't even cross her mind.

Making her way over a hill, Sara came to a stop, staring down. She shook her head as she sped up her pace, limping as fast as she could. She dropped to her knees, next to the form of Greg. She did nothing first, afraid of what she would find. Then slowly, she reached a hand out, shaking him.

"Greg?" she called, her bottom lip quivering.

He let out a groan, prompting her to call out his name again. His eyes opened, watching her through small slits before closing them.

"Come on Greg," Sara told him, finding her voice once again, "you need to get up."

"Uh uh," Greg muttered slightly, letting out a pained breath. He had no intentions of moving.

"We have to get back," Sara argued, shaking him again.

Greg let out another groan, opening his eyes again. "It hurts," he told her, still not making any move to get up.

"You have to, we can't stay out here. I know you hurt, I hurt too, but we'll die if we stay out here."

Greg shrugged, grimacing as he did so. His entire body was on fire, had been on fire since he drug himself out of the river. Breathing hurt, and he felt extremely nauseated, at this point, moving was the last thing on his mind.

"You can't be serious Greg," Sara said softly, watching him still, his eyes had closed again. "We have to get going. I don't think we're too far out."

Greg let out a couple of short coughs, groaning at the pressure it was placing on his ribs. Slowly he moved his hands under him, lifting himself to a sitting position. Sara helped him, sympathizing with each short cry he let out.

Now sitting, Greg wrapped his arms around his ribs, his breathing hitching as he tried to fight the pain. If sitting was this hard, Greg doubted he could walk, but one look at Sara told him that she wasn't going to leave him behind.

"We could be anywhere," Greg told her, his voice withdrawn. He was taking short breaths, holding them in as long as he could before taking another one. It hurt less this way, but his body wanted to fight him for deeper breaths. "That river could have taken us miles."

"All we have to do is follow the river back up. I'm sure someone's looking for us by now. It won't be long before we're found."

"Then let's just stay here," Greg argued, taking another short breath.

Sara just stood up, holding her hand out towards him. Greg took that as a no, and with a sigh, clasped Sara's hand in his. He grimaced as she pulled him up, slowly but firmly. Once on his feet, he swayed slightly, Sara held onto him until she was certain he wouldn't fall, and with a simple nod, they began to walk.

* * *

Catherine leaned against the vehicle, a black SUV with a dead battery. The door had been left open, the lights on for hours now, had drained the battery, meaning they would more in likely have to tow it back, seeing that trying to jump start it in the middle of a lightning storm wasn't the best idea.

She had only taken an extra minute to grab a hooded coat before heading out. Brass met her when she arrived. The thunder and lighting was gone now, but rain still came down in sheets. They had checked the scene over twice since her arrival, and found nothing.

Nothing but the car, and their cases. Greg and Sara were gone, just like that. As well as the car from the previous crime scene, but that was granted since they never expected it to last through the storm.

"Theories?" Catherine asked as Brass came up next to her. Brass just shook his head.

"What if they saw something?" Catherine continued after a minute, talking loud enough for him to hear her over the rain. "Got stuck somewhere, storm got really bad, had to take shelter?"

"There's no where to take shelter around here," Brass pointed out, "bleak and isolated."

Catherine nodded, her eyes tracing the scene once again, day had now come, it had been raining off and on, stopping for short periods of time before picking up again. "It was dark, you couldn't see an inch in front of your face…what if they thought they were going the right way, but in fact," her eyes followed the path opposite towards the cliff, then exchanged worried looks with Brass.

"You don't think?"

Brass shrugged as he followed Catherine over to the edge. On her hands and knees she glanced down at the dirtied water below, still moving quickly. "Looks run down," she said softly as Brass knelt next to her.

"Like someone was trying to climb up," Brass finished.

"I'll call search and rescue," Catherine said, a sickly feeling rolling around in her stomach.

**TBC**


	7. Caves

**Chapter Seven: Caves**

Glancing over her shoulder, Sara made sure Greg was still following her. She slowed down some, so that they were walking more side by side. Greg had one arm wrapped around his chest, the other swinging lightly by his side as he trudged on. The pair had said nothing for quite a long while, and had gotten nowhere.

"Come on Greg," Sara encouraged him, "we shouldn't be too much longer now."

Greg didn't answer her, only glancing up at the clouded sky that still looked menacing. Sara continued, "I'd say by night fall, we'd be back in town. We'll be safe and warm, have a good helping of food," she smiled at him, but he didn't return it.

"Okay," she finally sighed, looking at the ground. "I'm sorry I got us into this mess, but everything's going to be okay. You'll see, we're doing great now."

"Sara," Greg finally managed to say, wincing as he did so. "I should have listened to you, if I held the car down, we wouldn't be here."

Sara shook her head, "No, I'm not letting you blame yourself for this," she told him sharply.

"You have authority over me, I should have listened."

"Greg, I made a stupid choice. You were right about what you said," she let out a long sigh. "Let's not talk about this right now, okay?"

He nodded, and they walked on again in silence. They had only gotten a few feet further when it began to rain again. Letting out a groan, Greg glanced back up at the sky. "No more rain," he complained.

"We should find some shelter," Sara warned, and Greg agreed. Glancing around, he pointed over towards the rocky hills that lined the gulch.

Letting Greg take the lead, Sara followed at a slower pace, shivering in the rain as the skies darkened. The last thing they needed right now was more rain. As they approached their destination, Sara came to a stop.

"No way," she argued as Greg made his way into the opening of a small cave. "I am not going in there."

Greg shrugged, grimacing as he remembered he couldn't do that without experiencing pain. "Stay out here and drown, I'll be in here nice, warm and dry. Well, dry at least, can't promise anything about being warm."

Sara stood out there, arms crossed as she became even wetter. "Did I ever mention that I'm claustrophobic?"

Greg shook his head, making his way further inside. "No, you never did, but I'll keep that in mind."

Sara watched as he disappeared in the darkness, standing outside a little longer, before letting out a groan. How did Greg end up winning all the time in these sorts of situations? Taking careful steps, she slowly edged her way inside. At least now she was out of the rain.

"Greg?" she called, her voice echoing of the walls. It was completely dark within a few steps inside. She didn't like where this was going. "Greg?"

She had gone further inside, her eyes slowly adjusting to the darkness. The cave spread out some the further she went in. Hearing something behind her, she turned around, expecting to see Greg, but there was nothing behind her.

Her breathing quickened some as she turned back around. "Greg?" she asked quietly, looking behind her again. Still she saw nothing. Another sound, off to her right now, caused her to turn again. "Come on Greg, this isn't funny anymore," she called out, her voice louder now.

Sara wasn't about to let Greg get the best of her as she walked further in, watching each and every step she took. She heard it again then, the footsteps behind her, and she whirled around, exclaiming aha as she pointed a finger, at nothing. Drawing in a sharp breath she took a few steps backwards. She had heard him behind her, Greg was doing this on purpose, she was sure of it. Letting out the long breath, she straightened up. He wouldn't be able to scare her, she wouldn't let him.

Turning back around, she let out a scream as something jumped up in front of her, lights flashing. She staggered backwards, falling down and screaming again at the same time. It was then she heard him laughing. Blushing, Sara frowned, not amused as she tried to slow her breathing.

Greg was also on the ground not to far from her, holding a flashlight in one hand, the other holding his chest as he laughed, "Ow, ow," he complained softly, still laughing despite the pain it caused. "That was, priceless," he spat out in between heavy breaths as he calmed down.

Sara still sat, glaring at him. "That, was not funny," Sara told him sternly, arms folded across her knees.

"You should have seen the look on your face," Greg laughed, leaning back, trying to take some weight off his aching chest. He shined the flashlight on Sara's face, watching her reaction. She only glared at him. "I should have had a camera."

"You are so dead," Sara warned him, "When we get back to town, I am going to kill you."

Greg laughed. "You love me too much to do that," he said, laughing still.

"I wouldn't count on that," she told him, standing up. She brushed the dirt from her jeans as Greg slowly stood to his feet, obviously in a better mood, but still in pain.

"Where did you get that anyways?" Sara asked, stepping closer to him.

Greg turned around, taking a few steps and shining the light on a pile of bones. Sara grimaced. "You're tampering with a crime scene Greg?"

"There's no proof he was murdered," Greg pointed out, shining the flashlight down on the skeleton's foot, where a shoe was still attached. A metal trap was thoroughly entwined in the bone. "I'm guessing this was a cave that belonged to some sort of animal, there's a good deal of bedding in the back, and this here was our hunter, stuck in his own trap."

Greg nodded to the gun that rested on the ground. Sara knelt next to him, "But you don't know that for sure. You know how much trouble you can get in for messing with a scene like this?"

"Sara, if we don't 'mess' with this scene, as you call it, we are going to be the next 'scene' our lab investigates. He must of died quickly, poisoning in the trap maybe."

"How do you figure that?" Sara wondered, watching him.

Greg grinned, "He has a lot of food left, and I don't think he would have starved himself to death."

"We are not eating anything from here," Sara said flatly, glaring at him as he pulled the dusty backpack away from the bones.

"It's all that dried stuff, hasn't even been open," Greg argued, pulling the small packets free.

"That's just wrong Greg," Sara shot back, "Besides, we don't know if they are any good."

"They've been sealed nice and tight for," he brought the package closer, shining the light on the top. "Eight years."

"Okay, definitely not eating that."

"All we need now, is a pan," Greg indicated, pulling it free from the backpack, "And some matches," it took a moment, but he found some.

Sara shook her head, "You can't be serious, that's just disgusting."

"I don't know about you," Greg told her, standing again, moving slowly. "But I am starving; I haven't eaten in over two days now."

Sara just folded her arms, looking away. She was hungry too, but not enough to willingly eat eight year old, dried packaged food that they found off of some dead guy in an old abandoned animal den. She watched as Greg made his way to the entrance, washing off the dusty pan in the rain, before collecting some inside. It was hard to see, with the sun gone again, it had turned nearly pitch black.

"So, exactly how are you planning on cooking that?" Sara wondered.

Greg shook the box of matches, and Sara nodded. "That'll start a really big fire then."

"I'm not burning the matches," Greg rolled his eyes even though Sara couldn't see him do so. Reaching over he felt for the backpack, and several old newspapers that had been used to wrap the food in. He used the newspapers to start the fire, adding the backpack to fuel the source. He wasn't sure if it would work or not, but was surprised when it in turn, worked rather well.

The fire wouldn't last long, so Greg wasted no time in attempting to cook the meal. He was thankful that these meals didn't take that long too cook, and was satisfied to find that it smelled relatively good by the time it was nearly ready.

"How are you planning on eating that?" Sara asked. She didn't want to admit it, but the food smelled good.

Greg demonstrated by snatching a noodle out of the pan, dropping it in his mouth. "Hot, hot, hot," he complained, shaking his hand as he swallowed the piece. Sara laughed, shaking her head.

He gave her a smile, "It's hot, but not too bad. Needs some pepper…"

Greg offered her some, but she refused, watching him shrug in the dimming light. She wasn't going to resort to eating with her fingers. That was even more degrading. Greg on the other hand seemed to have no problem with it, other then the fact he kept on burning his fingers each time he picked a piece up. Finally, irritated, Sara scooted over, closer to him, reaching for a few pieces herself.

Greg was right, the food wasn't too bad, though quite hot, and Sara found herself joining Greg in a chorus of ows as the two finished the small meal. Letting out a sigh as they finished, Sara lay down on the sandy floor, resting her head on her arm and she watched the rest of the fire burn down.

A few moments later, Greg lay down across from her, facing towards her. She gave him a small smile, though she could barely see his face. "How are you feeling?" she asked him softly.

"Okay, I guess," he answered back in the same tone. "Still sore, but I don't think I'll die from it."

"Good," Sara told him, "Because I'm still going to kill you when we get back."

"You're going to have to catch me first," Greg taunted her, provoking a laugh as she closed her eyes.

"That won't be too hard," was the last she remembered saying before falling asleep.

**TBC**


	8. Searches

**Chapter Eight: Searches**

The steady beat of the rain against the window hadn't ceased since it started several hours ago. It wasn't a heavy rain, more of a drizzle, unlike how it had been earlier. Still it was enough to call the CSI's back to the lab.

Catherine let out a sigh as she gazed out the window, the lights from the other surrounding buildings were skewered against the elliptical drops of rain that still clung onto the smooth plain. Arms crossed, and one hand tapping against the other arm, Catherine turned back to the small television set that was provided in the break room. It had caught her attention.

"The search for the two missing CSI agents has been called off due to current weather conditions. Sources say that there is little hope of finding the two alive after evidence has shown that the two more in likely became lost in the river. A recovery mission will be sent out when it has been deemed safe enough. The two agents, Greg Sanders and Sara Sidle worked for the Las Vegas Crime Lab, and were working at a scene when the heavy rains started."

Catherine shook her head, turning her attention back out towards the window. She hadn't wanted to come back. She had been off shift now for some time, but unable to go home, she had stuck around, only calling to make certain the sitter could stay with Lindsey for a while longer.

"Hey Cath?"

She glanced over her shoulder, smiling some as Nick leaned in the doorway. "Hey," she replied.

"Is it true?" he wondered. "They're calling off the search already?"

Catherine nodded, "Search teams says they wouldn't have lasted more than twenty minutes in that river. They looked for three hours, didn't find anything. It's just too dangerous to keep people out there looking under those odds."

"It's only been day," Nick argued, "not even that. Searches go on for weeks sometimes. So why call this one off after only a few hours?"

"Those searches they had leads. In our case, we have nothing. I'm not saying that it is right, because I don't think that it is either. But the facts…"

"Screw the facts Catherine," Nick told her. He had ventured further into the room. "You know as well as I do that finding nothing doesn't mean anything. That river more in likely wiped out everything, but it doesn't mean that they are dead. Assume nothing, remember?"

She nodded, agreeing with him. He watched her for a moment longer, "I'm going to see what I can find," he told her softly.

"Nick," she called after him, waiting for him to turn around and face her. Nick did so, waiting for her to tell him it was foolish, dangerous. "Be careful," she said instead, surprising him some.

Nick nodded, "I will," he told her softly.

Catherine nodded as he left, watching the open doorway for a moment before heading after him.

* * *

It had taken a while to find a way across the river. It was still flowing fast, but not rising as much, even though it was still raining lightly. Catherine turned to Nick, watching as he worked to get his flashlight to turn on.

"There should be new batteries in my case," she told him, fastening her vest.

He nodded, moving over to where she had set her case down, flipping it open with one hand. Reaching in, he pulled the new pair out, dumping the old ones in their place before closing the lid, locking it down.

"Remember, we're on backup shifts, if we get the call, we have to go in. No exceptions," Catherine reminded him.

"Yeah," Nick nodded, turning on his flashlight. He stood up from his crouched position, taking a glance around. "That's why I want to find them fast. If they fell in the river, then they would have gotten out on this side. Cliff's too step to climb back up," he followed the muddy side with his flashlight, the beam tracing the apparent disturbance.

"Then let's start looking," Catherine gave him a quick smile. "Watch and listen, let's not make any mistakes."

He nodded, already falling in step behind Catherine, taking slow, even paced steps. His flashlight scanned the ground, his eyes searching for anything. Shoe prints, hand prints, impressions…anything at all would be helpful. He also checked the river every four steps; things became easier when you fell into a routine.

Nick made sure to stay several feet behind Catherine, making sure to search everything again, fresh eyes often saw something tired ones missed. He debated on taking pictures, but decided against it. Catherine had the call on what to do, besides that factor, the department wouldn't be happy to learn they were using company film on an unlisted case.

Ahead of him, Catherine came to a stop, letting out a low whistle. "Dead end," she told him as he came up behind her. He let out a similar sigh of frustration, eyeing the new cliff face that they had come up to.

"Now what?" Nick wondered.

"They could have gotten out further down," Catherine suggested, studying the rock face. "We're going to have to find another way around, there's no way we'll be able to climb that, not without gear."

"You see that?" Nick asked, taking a few more steps towards the bank. Catherine followed him, watching as he got to his hands and knees, shining his flashlight along the overhanging rock that led into the river.

"It's a tree," Catherine commented dryly.

"It's a broken tree," Nick pointed out, "looks like half its branches were ripped off."

"Nick, it's a flash flood, these rivers that accumulate from the rain can and will tear up everything in its path."

He shook his head, scanning the side that faced the river. "Break's not consistent with wear and tear, looks sudden almost. Check it out, the cliff side over here looks easily climbable."

Catherine nodded, stepping back as her phone went off. "Willows," she stated, lifting it up to her ear after the second ring.

Nick continued to study the cliff side, but it was hard to see in the dim light. His attention returned back to the river, watching the water flow, studying the current. It would have pulled someone right to the edge, right into the tree. He was sure of it. Now they only had to follow it.

"I'm going to try and get over this," Nick called back to her, standing up.

"That's going to have to wait," Catherine told him, "Homicide investigation, just got the call. We're the only ones available right now."

Nick nodded, letting out a short breath as he followed Catherine back. "No one else can take the case?" he asked.

"Warrick's already busy, and Sara and Greg aren't exactly available. Grissom's meeting us there, we'll swing by the lab real quick, grab a change of dry clothes but we have to make it quick."

"They're still out there," Nick told her, watching her nod.

"And we have work to do. Sara and Greg are going to have to wait a little longer. We'll be back out here soon enough, don't worry."

**TBC**


	9. Home Once Again

**Chapter Nine: Home Once Again**

She had a headache. Not that it was something new, she had had a headache now for hours, and taking some Tylenol hadn't helped either. Pinching the bridge of her nose, Catherine closed her eyes for a moment, before turning her attention back to the map in front of her.

"There were only three routes our vic could have taken," she told them, marking the ending point with a large X. "We need to find out what route she took, and who she could have run in with during that time."

Next to her Nick shrugged, leaning on the table. "Sure," he said sarcastically. "No problem." Catherine's sigh matched his own.

Working had been tough. It was now in fourth day since Sara and Greg had disappeared, and still was no word on what had happened to them. They hadn't had anytime to go out in search for them again. Three new cases had come in, keeping them quite busy. Tomorrow a recovery mission began, but that didn't make her feel any better.

She had already talked to Ecklie that morning, claming full responsibility for their losses. Though Grissom had assured both her and Ecklie that it was mistake, her punishment, as Ecklie called it, had yet to be decided. It didn't bother Catherine much, Ecklie could kill her for all she cared, it still wouldn't make up for what had happened.

This was the second time she had messed up big. The first was the lab explosion, that nearly killed Greg, leaving him in the hospital for several weeks. Not to mention Sara had been hurt in the explosion as well. Now they were both gone, and she had no one to blame but herself.

Shaking her thoughts off, she pointed to the start of route A that was already marked on the map. "If she took this route here," she turned to Nick, "There are a lot of stores along this way. No telling what could have happened."

"But we should have a good witness account," Nick pointed out, "Saturday night, everyone's out on the town."

Catherine agreed, moving to route B, "More desolate, not much of a chance of running into anyone, but if someone was following her, we have no witnesses."

Once again, Nick nodded, but this time did not say anything to contribute. Before anything else could be said, Catherine's cell phone went off, a sleek tone she had chosen for business use.

Pulling it from her back pocket, she flipped it open, pressing it against her ear. "Willows."

Her eyes shot open as she straightened up, nearly losing the hold she had on her phone. "Greg," she practically yelled, catching Nick's attention quickly. "Where the hell are you?"

Nick couldn't hear Greg directly, but could tell that he was rambling. He couldn't help but smile a little, it was the same tone Greg used whenever he was in some sort of trouble. He quickly banished the thought though, more interested in learning of his whereabouts. And after all this time they thought they were dead…not that he actually given up hope, but there was little to go off of, given the circumstances.

He watched Catherine nod, her bottom lip tightening. "Sara too? Alright, we're on our way."

She closed the phone with a sigh, nodding to him. "Desert Palm Hospital, Greg says they've been there for the last few hours now, and they're finishing looking over Sara."

Nick watched her, frowning, "How did they get there exactly?"

"Walked, I gather. Come on, let's get going, I'll give Grissom a call on the way out, he can meet us there."

* * *

Greg was a mess, quite literally. Not only was he covered head to toe in dirt and who knew what else, he also didn't smell all that clean. His hair was folded back, obviously showing that he was at one time, thoroughly soaked, and his clothes definitely needed to be washed. 

He met them with a short nod, popping another handful of peanuts in his mouth before stuffing the empty bag into his pocket. Running a hand along his face gave them a small smile, a small hi was all he was able to offer.

Nick patted him on the shoulder before sitting down next to him, "It's good to see you man."

Greg nodded in agreement, "Believe me, you have no idea."

Catherine shook her head, standing still as she crossed her arms. "What exactly happened?"

Greg fidgeted lightly, folding his hands together. "Well…that's sort of a long story. To make it short, we fell, took a wild ride on the river, probably would have been more enjoyable if it wasn't so cold and if there weren't as many rocks," he said, grimacing lightly at the thought. "Then spent the last three days trying to hitch a ride home only to realize that no one was willing to pick up two drowned rats and take them to the hospital."

"You're not hurt are you?" Nick asked, watching his expression.

Greg shrugged, wincing some. "A little I guess, the doctors say I have some bruising of the ribs, but that it's nothing serious. And that I'm a bit dehydrated…can you honestly believe that? I had to have swallowed over half that river, and I'm dehydrated. Go figure."

"What about Sara?" Catherine prodded, glad to hear that he was okay for the most part.

"She took a hit to the head, but seemed to be fine. More in likely dehydrated like me, and hungry. I'm starving, you didn't bring anything did you?"

Catherine shook her head, about to say sorry but was interrupted as Grissom walked up behind her. "I did, I figured as much," he stated, handing the McDonalds bag over to him. "I didn't know what you liked, so I got you a cheese burger, everyone likes cheeseburgers."

Greg took the bag readily, nodding his thanks. "Unless you're a lactose intolerant vegetarian," he pointed out.

Nick laughed harshly, "Man, that would suck. You have any idea how much food that wipes out?"

Greg grinned in between bites as Grissom stood next to Catherine, inquiring on how Sara was doing. They didn't have to wait long, as Sara joined them in a few short minutes, taking a seat next to Greg.

She made a face, turning away. "How can you eat meat, I just don't get it."

Grissom laughed softly, handing her the other bag, ignoring her protests. "It's a salad, supposed to be really good, or so I hear."

Sara nodded, pulling out the container, holding it on her lap. "What I really want is a shower," she said, grimacing as she touched the bandage on her head. "And I have a headache."

"Probably because you're starving," Greg nudged her in the arm. "You need to eat."

Sara frowned, watching him. "You might want to at least chew that you know," she told him, opening her salad.

Greg grinned at her, causing her to shake her head.

"That's disgusting," she said quietly, turning up to Grissom. "I just really want to go home, get cleaned up and forget any of this ever happened."

Grissom nodded, taking a step back. "I'll take you home," he glanced up at the others. "One of you giving Greg a ride home?"

Nick nodded, offering almost as soon as Catherine did. The two laughed a little, Catherine finally giving in, choosing to return back to the lab. They had driven separate vehicles in, seeing that Nick's shift was almost done anyways, Catherine wanting to do more work on her own.

It certainly was a good feeling to know that they were safe.

**TBC**


	10. Truth and Lies

**I'll be doing R2R next chapter, but once agian, a quick thanks to all my readers, you guys are what make the chapters come out. **

* * *

**Chapter Ten: Truth and Lies**

Both Greg and Sara had called in sick the next day. It wasn't surprising; everyone knew that it would be a few days before the two of them got back on their feet. The atmosphere in the lab the following day was much lighter than it had been.

They came in the following day, only minutes apart though they had driven in separately. Sara ran into Greg when he was in the locker room, giving him a small, sympathetic smile, seeing that he was still moving slow, obviously still sore from everything. She had never had bruised ribs before, but had heard that they were quite painful.

"You should be home," she told him, sitting down on the bench. She didn't have to see him to know that he was rolling his eyes.

"Look who's talking," Greg muttered, his tone, however, was light.

She laughed, turning back to him, "You need the rest more than I do. You can barely move."

"I'll get the hang of it," Greg prompted, resting his chin on top of his folded hands.

She nodded, her gaze becoming serious now. "I never really thanked you, for what you did," she told him quietly.

Greg glanced at her, "I didn't do anything," he answered, meeting her gaze.

Sara shook her head, swinging one leg over so that she was now straddling the bench. "You did a lot, and I was wrong. I'm just glad you don't hate me for it."

Greg laughed softly, earning a surprised glance from her.

"You think this is funny?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

Greg grinned, his lips pressed together as he nodded. "Yes actually," he laughed a little more.

"Okay, what about this is so amusing?" she asked, crossing her arms.

"The only reason we got into that mess was because I didn't listen to you. If I had, we would have been in and out, back at the lab before anyone missed us. Then I was afraid you'd never talk to me again…" he trailed off, clamping his mouth shut, already feeling as though he had said too much.

Sara let out a sigh, shaking her head. "I can't believe you're still blaming yourself for this. Catherine gave us an order, I ignored it. I could have killed us Greg. You know how that makes me feel?"

Greg glanced up at her, about to say something, but came to a stop as Ecklie walked past the open door, doubling back when he saw the pair. Leaning in just far enough to be considered inside the room, Ecklie nodded to the both of them. "Sanders, Sidle, my office, now," and with that, he was gone once again.

Greg shrugged a little, wincing as he did so. He had to remember that shrugging wasn't exactly the best of ideas right now. "How come there's never a 'hi' from him? Never a 'how are you doing, glad to see that you're not dead, would you like a pay raise'? It's always the 'my office, now' command. It's like he's on an autopilot.

Sara would have laughed if it wasn't for the knot in her stomach. She had been in Ecklie's office before, and it wasn't the best place to be. She preferred Grissom's office over his, and Grissom had dead things hanging in there. "Let's not keep him waiting," she told Greg, standing.

* * *

They were surprised to see Catherine and Grissom already in there, and Sara felt the knot in her stomach tighten as Greg shut the door behind them .Ecklie nodded to the two seats in between the others, before starting, his hands folded as he leaned back in his chair.

"I am very curious to know how this all happened," Ecklie asked, turning to them.

Sara glanced down at the floor as she sat, trying to figure out a way to explain things, but before she could start, Greg spoke up next to her.

"It's my fault sir," Greg stated easily. Sara glanced at him uneasily, a bit baffled and confused. But he didn't seem to notice as he continued, "Catherine gave us an order to leave when the heavy rains started. While we were packing up, I figured we may as well collect what evidence we could from the car, since we would more in likely lose the vehicle in the storm. I ignored both my supervisor's orders, and in doing so I put both of us at a great risk."

Ecklie nodded slowly as Greg ignored the confused look from Sara, and the surprised look from Grissom. "You must understand Sanders, that this lab works at as a team, and a team needs order. We can't have order when someone refuses to fall into their place."

Greg nodded, leaning forward, his head still raised. "Yes sir," he said quietly.

Ecklie nodded as well, glad to have heard an acknowledgement from the younger man. "You will receive a week's suspension, unpaid leave, for each ignored order from both your supervisors, and another week for your poor choice. I do not want to see you in this lab during that time, and if something like this happens again in the future, you will be looking for a new job. Do I make myself clear?"

Greg nodded, swallowing as he took the news in. Next to him, Grissom spoke up. "21 days? Isn't that a little harsh Ecklie?"

"Not if we don't want something like this to happen again," Ecklie meet his gaze firmly. "Sanders is well aware of the rules, this is nothing new to him."

"I am responsible for this as well," Catherine said, sitting up. "I shouldn't have left them behind. We should have gone together, especially concerning the weather."

Ecklie shook his head, "You gave an order, and it was refused. None of that is your fault."

"It would have been if they had died," Catherine pointed out, to which Ecklie nodded.

"Yes, but they didn't, did they? You may go now."

It was clear that there would be no further argument as Greg left the room first. Grissom followed, wanting to give the CSI an encouraging word, but unable to say anything. Even if he had thought of something, Greg was already down the hall, turning back into the locker room. Grissom stood there for a moment, wondering whether or not he should follow him, before turning away, heading to his own office.

**TBC**


	11. A Simple Thanks

**Chapter Eleven: A Simple Thanks**

Greg sat down with a heavy sigh, his head dropping down as he brought his hands up, running them through his hair, still wet from the shower he had taken before coming in. If he had known that he would be leaving again so quickly, he wouldn't have bothered.

Crossing his arms atop his knees, Greg stared at the ground, his mind bombarded with thoughts. Did he just do what he thought he did? Did he just take the blame for everything? His mind worked over the last few moments as he nodded in conformation to himself.

He tried to think over exactly why he had done so, tried to reason with himself in an attempt find a motive for his actions. Sure, he liked Sara, he liked her a lot, but did that alone prompt him to take the fall? Twenty one days was a long time; even so Greg considered himself lucky that Ecklie didn't fire him on the spot. It wouldn't surprise Greg if he was reconsidering it right now.

He rubbed his arms slowly, embracing himself tightly as he coughed a few times, the pain still evident in his chest and ribs. Pursing his lips together firmly he lifted his head, staring at the locker in front of him. With another sigh, he reached up, opening it.

The door swung open slowly, as Greg stared for a minute at the contents inside. He looked up quickly as someone paused in the doorway to find Grissom watching him. As soon as he made eye contact with him, the older man motioned to him.

"Come see me in my office," Grissom told him, already turning to leave.

"Griss," Greg stood up quickly, one hand still resting on the door. "I was just leaving, honest. I know I should have been out of here earlier…I got a bit distracted, I'm sorry," he apologized easily. The last thing he needed now was another lecture. Not only that, he was afraid of exactly what Grissom would tell him. Ecklie wouldn't fire him directly, it wasn't his way. He would send someone else to do it for him; that was what Greg was afraid of.

"Greg," Grissom cut him off, nodding to him still, "my office."

Greg bit his lip as Grissom left, waiting behind for a moment. There wasn't anyway he could avoid it. Cursing himself inwardly, Greg turned back to his locker. He should have been out of here nearly thirty minutes ago; there wasn't any reason for him to stick around. He shook his head, closing the door after realizing there was nothing inside he really needed.

After a moment of consideration, Greg decided that it would be best if he took the quickest route to Grissom's office. He couldn't stop it, so it would be better to get it over with. He ignored the few people that looked his way, somehow knowing what was on their minds, and instead kept his head held high even though the gnawing feeling was still in the pit, and growing stronger by the second.

Grissom's door was open, making the choice of whether to knock or not easy for him. He stopped right inside the door there, not saying anything as he watched Grissom search through his files. It took him a moment to realize that Greg was standing there, but when he did, he waved him in, telling him to close the door on his way.

Greg did as he was instructed, still not liking any of it as he sat down, his eyes level with the top of his boss' desk. Grissom let out a sigh as he closed the filing cabinet, looking back up at him. "You know Greg; it isn't our responsibility to cover for other team members when they make a mistake."

Greg's eyes snapped up, focusing on him. "I don't know what you're talking about," he said quickly. Perhaps a little too quickly.

Grissom raised his hand, stopping him from saying anything else. "Sara's told me everything."

Greg bit his bottom lip as he raised an eyebrow. "Everything?"

Grissom nodded, "About the car, the cliff, the river…the cave."

Greg grimaced, frowning after a moment. "What makes you believe her word over mine?"

Grissom shook his head, laughing a little. "Honestly? Because I expect something like this out of her, not you."

Greg gave him a small shrug, grimacing at the same time. He really had to stop doing that. Instead he looked down, his fingers running the length of the arm rest as the silence stretched on.

"So…" Greg broke the silence looking back up. "What happens now?"

"I've talked with Ecklie," Grissom started off, stopping when Greg shook his head.

"You move fast," he commented, becoming quiet in order to let him finish.

"Your suspension has been knocked down to one week, for lying. It was the shortest I could get it."

"I can't complain," Greg confessed. "I thought for sure Ecklie was going to have me fired. A week is nothing."

"You won't get fired," Grissom reassured him.

Greg nodded slowly, feeling a little better now. "What about Sara?"

"Don't worry about her. Go home, rest up. It's too early for you to be back here anyways."

Greg nodded, pushing himself to his feet. He found himself back in the locker room again, although he wasn't sure why. Sitting for a moment he thought things over again. With his suspension now cut down to a single week, things didn't seem as bad. But how hard had Sara gotten it? How long was she gone for, three weeks like it had been for him? Longer even? Or was she gone for good?

"Thinking?"

Greg glanced up, his face passive as he watched her from the doorway. After a few seconds, he nodded. "Yeah actually."

Sara walked in slowly, her small purse clutched in her hands in front of her. She sat down on the end of the bench a good several inches away from him. "You're not mad are you?"

Greg raised an eyebrow, turning towards her. "Why would I be?"

"Because it must have taken a lot of courage for you to stand up like that, and not only that, Ecklie now knows that you're capable of lying," Sara rambled off, growing quiet towards the end.

"Forget Ecklie," Greg told her, laughing softly. "How are you doing?"

She shrugged, dropping her purse down on the bench next to her. "As good as I can I gather. What about you?"

"I'm only gone for a week now."

Sara nodded, "I heard," she smiled as he looked up. "I have my sources, you're still a newbie."

"Thanks," Greg rolled his eyes, "How long are you gone?"

"Two," she admitted without hesitation.

"How come you only got two? I mean, Ecklie wanted to give me three at first, or does that come along with being a newbie too?"

Sara laughed, "Believe me Greg, Ecklie wanted to give me four weeks, but Grissom talked him down to only two."

Greg nodded, starting to stand, "Well, I…we should probably be out of here."

Sara caught his arm, pulling him back down. "I never really thanked you for what you did," Sara told him.

Greg shook her off, "You don't have to," he started, only to be cut off as Sara leaned in, capturing his lips in her own.

The kiss lasted but a second, and when Sara pulled back, Greg blushed, grinning as he did so. "Well, on the second thought, you can thank me all you want."

Sara gave him a small smile, patting him on the shoulder as she stood, grabbing her purse on the way. "I'll see you in a few weeks," she told him, walking out the door.

Greg watched her leave, a smirk on his face. He was slightly disappointed that he was suspended for only a week. That meant he would have to wait another whole week until Sara got back. That also meant he would end up with Grissom or Sophia, and knowing Grissom, he would probably be working with Sophia.

He frowned at that thought; maybe he could take some vacation time until she got back. With that thought, Greg let out a sigh, waiting for a second longer before leaving the room. If he hurried, he might be able to catch Sara in the parking lot before she left.

**The End**

* * *

**Wheee****! Another story finished, I may do a sequel for this, still thinking about it. I have a few ideas I could play with. **

**A major thanks to all my wonderful reviewers, and thanks for sticking with me through the story. I enjoy reading all your comments!**

**Puddleduck:**

Ecklie is…Ecklie. There is no other way to describe him, although you did a very good job of doing so. Twenty one days is a long time, yes, Greg may go crazy being gone that long.

**witchbsword:**

Lol! Go right ahead! I don't mind, Ecklie's not on my favorite list anyways.

**Mellaithwen:**

Wow…stay away from Mellaithwen when she's venting, right? -Shields Greg and Sara and…wait, Ecklie can defend himself. –shields Greg and Sara from rants-

**wdbydoglvr:**

I'm glad you like all my stories so far! This is last chapter here for this story, like I said, I may post a sequel. I'll wait and see.

**CSIchick**

I'm a greg/sara shipper too, I have to admit I wasn't at first, but I grew used to the idea, and now I can't stand seeing them not together. :D

**Sillie**

Wouldn't it be nice to have a guy like Greg around? 100 pure gentleman, huh?

**Ashley's Ace:**

Thanks for all your comments!

**Unlikely-to-bear-it:**

Your name always makes me think of Unbearable for some reason. Lol. We all hate Ecklie…don't we?

**LuvinNickyStokes:**

Don't we all? My boss is somewhat like Greg, so it's pretty cool working with her. We get along really well and give each other a load of crap every day, lol, so totally not like Ecklie. Which I am thankful for of course.

**Dee**

Yes, Greg is a wonderful, loving person. Thanks for your comments!

**Jenny70529:**

I love reading your comments, they're always…so fun to read!

You honestly have (err, had) a boss like Ecklie? My boss is nearly opposite of him, more like a Greg, just opposite gender.

My job is really physically demanding most of the time. Had hardly anything today, but it was a bit of a down side, I got some chemical solution in my eye and nearly drowned trying to wash it out. We don't wear hand or eye protection anymore, haven't for a long time, we don't even have hand/eye protection anymore, and they took out our eye wash station, so we had to become creative. We used an empty coffee pot, filled it with cold water while I leaned over the sink backwards, and flushed it out really well. Downside of that was I ended up looking like a drowned rat the rest of the day.

I live in Washington, so it doesn't get to hot all the time, it gets pretty bad in the summers sometimes, we just have to put up with it. It's an old lab, I swear, I don't know what's holding it together half the time.

Your job sounds stressful, but at least you get a change of location, different scenery, all that jazz stuff. But it's a job none the less, right?

**Daisyangel**

My next story, if I do decide to post it, may turn out as a Greg/Sara. I had to have Greg do something, and I felt that was the best.

**witchazel:**

Sara probably would go crazy, although Greg might as well too, 21 days is a long, long time. Thanks for all your comments!

**lins:**

And so it ends…for now! Love reading your comments, thanks for sticking with me all the way!


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